Book Review: The Unfinished Revolution: How a Generation Is Reshaping Family, Work, and Gender in America
Abstract
WOXspwoxWork and Occupations0730-88841552-8464SAGE PublicationsSage CA: Los Angeles, CA10.1177/073088841140339410.1177_0730888411403394Book ReviewsBook Review: The Unfinished Revolution: How a Generation Is Reshaping Family, Work, and Gender in AmericaBlair-LoyMaryUniversity of California, San Diego, CA, USA112011384508510GersonK. (2010). The Unfinished Revolution: How a Generation Is Reshaping Family, Work, and Gender in America. Oxford, UK: Oxford University. pp. $24.95 (cloth).© SAGE Publications 20112011SAGE PublicationsThe Unfinished Revolution is Kathleen Gerson’s fourth masterful book on how people have negotiated the seismic changes of the last quarter of the 20th century in the United States, including the rise of mothers’ employment rates, the increase in divorce rates, and the challenge of work–family conflict. This book analyzes in-depth interviews with 120 young adults with diverse backgrounds. Gerson elicits their dreams and their real-world, fallback positions. Her findings contradict much of the handwringing (by the political right and the left, depending on the issue) about the decline of family values, the corrosion of family caregiving, and the decline of women’s work ambition.As the mother of a preschooler, I inhaled the chapters on how young adults now view their parents’ work and marital decisions. Gerson moves recent debates forward by showing that it is the context, meaning, and consequences of family forms,